Hilly states in India harbor diverse biodiversity and culture. For centuries, these areas have experienced harmonious co-existence with the environment. However, exodus of highland people to the plains in search of livelihood opportunities has become a major problem. For example of the 13 districts of Uttarakhand, migration has hit nine hill districts over the last decade. According to 2011 census, two hill districts, Pauri and Almora, has a negative growth in population.

The various reasons for this situation include:

• water shortage and degradation of grazing land due to furious dam-building activity
• Limited economic avenues, educational and skill development opportunities.
• Agriculture turning an unprofitable venture due to lack of irrigation infrastructure. For example in the Uttarakhand’s 11 mountain districts, a mere 18 percent of land remains irrigated, compared to over 95 percent in the plain districts of Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar.
• Poor connectivity which makes living hard in these remote regions. According to a 2011 Planning commission report 5,000 villages (almost 58 percent of villages) in Uttarakhand remain cut off from proper roads
• Most highland farmers cannot compete with the high production volume of lowlands and are frequently paid only a fraction of the value of their produce due to long supply chains that increase transportation and other costs.
• Unplanned and unchecked tourism which adds to the pressure on existing limited mountain resources like water and biodiversity.
• Rising aspirations of young generation.

Implications of excess outward migration:

• The traditional knowledge of mountain people is getting destroyed.
• Skewed sex ratio
• Negative implications for essential services like health services in hill regions.
• Strategic aspects like depopulation in border areas which may pose threat due to foreign incursions or growth of Maoist influence.
• Delimitation exercises tend to shift more political constituencies towards plain region which defies the initial objectives of hill states like Uttarakhand.
• Emergence of ghost villages and hamlets. Uttarakhand statistics department claims that 1,065 villages have permanently turned into ‘ghost villages’.
• Pressure on few plain regions of the hill state, rising inequalities and overall skewed development.
• Mass migration has also checked the local utilization of the Chir pine needles, leaving more fuel for forest fires.

Possible solutions include:

• Generating employment and income: creating a niche tourism circuit which promotes sustainable mountain tourism, empowering local entrepreneurs through adequate finance and know-how, Value chain development for enhancing livelihoods of local people.
• Inviting industries to the mountains that don’t pollute the fragile ecosystem, Promoting efficiency in irrigation and promoting horticulture, Beekeeping, agroforestry and organic farming for additional income.
• Promoting mini hydro power projects and other renewable sources of energy like wind and solar power.               

• establishing skill development centers and re-looking at the existing education and the healthcare systems in hills
• Capacity building of local bodies keeping in mind effects of Climate Change.
• Capacity Building is also required in use of Geographical Information Systems and Remote Sensing Technologies for efficient monitoring and implementation of various programmes and integrated hazard management.